Category Archives: Best Practices

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EEOC Updates COVID-19 Guidance with Anti-Retaliation Section

On November 17, 2021, the EEOC updated its technical guidance on COVID-19 and anti-discrimination with a new anti-retaliation section. The new section largely restates existing statutory anti-retaliation protections in the context of COVID-19.  The guidance provides several examples of COVID-related protected activity, which include filing a charge with the EEOC alleging that an employer has … Continue Reading

Whistleblower Claims on the Horizon Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

In recent weeks, there have been numerous widely reported incidents of employees, particularly those in the health care industry, claiming that they have been retaliated against for reporting health and safety concerns related to COVID-19.  Such complaints are indicative of the kinds of whistleblower and retaliation claims employers are likely to see in the near … Continue Reading

NLRB Permits Confidentiality Restrictions During Internal Investigations

As reported in Proskauer’s Labor Relations Update blog, the NLRB issued an important opinion on December 17, 2019 relating to employer rules requiring confidentiality from employees during workplace investigations.  Apogee Retail LLC d/b/a Unique Thrift Store, 368 NLRB No. 144 (2019). The Board held, in a reversal of the Obama-era Board, that employers may require … Continue Reading

Proskauer to Present on Managing Whistleblowing Employees at ABA Midwinter Meeting

On Thursday March 23, 2017 at 9:00 a.m., Lloyd Chinn will speak on “Practical Advice and Tips for Managing Whistleblowing Employees: Where Do We Go After the Volcano Blows?” at the 2017 Midwinter Meeting of the ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law’s Employment Rights and Responsibilities Committee in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Chinn is a partner … Continue Reading

Proskauer to Present at Whistleblower Conference in NY

On Monday, February 27, 2017, Proskauer Partner Steve Pearlman, co-head of the Firm’s Whistleblowing & Retaliation Group, will present on key considerations for crafting effective employment-related agreements, including separation and settlement agreements, at a program developed by Compliance Week and Financial Research Associates. This in-depth conversation will allow senior compliance, finance, and audit executives the … Continue Reading

Proskauer Joins Heads of SEC & OSHA Whistleblower Programs in Webinar

On September 27, 2016, Proskauer Partner Steven J. Pearlman, co-head of the Whistleblowing & Retaliation Practice Group, participated in a Bloomberg webinar with Jane Norberg, Acting Chief of the SEC Office of the Whistleblower, MaryAnn Garrahan, Director of OSHA’s Whistleblower Protection Program, and plaintiff-side practitioner, Jason Zuckerman.  The participants discussed: the SEC Whistleblower Reward Program; … Continue Reading

OSHA Issues New Guidance Regarding Whistleblower Settlements

OSHA has issued new guidance on approving settlement agreements in whistleblower cases, revising portions of its Whistleblower Investigations Manual.  The guidance, dated August 23 but not released until September 15, states that settlements approved by OSHA cannot contain provisions discouraging employees from making future disclosures or contacting the government.  It also sets forth other settlement … Continue Reading

EEOC Proposes Expansive Enforcement Guidance for Retaliation Claims

For the first time in nearly 20 years, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued proposed enforcement guidance regarding retaliation claims.  According to the EEOC, the revised guidance is necessary in light of several court decisions, including the Supreme Court’s decision in Univ. of Tex. SW Med. Ctr. v. Nassar, 133 S. Ct. 2517 (2013), … Continue Reading

Lloyd Chinn Joins Solicitor of Labor For Whistleblower Discussion

This morning, Lloyd Chinn, co-Chair of Proskauer’s Whistleblowing & Retaliation Group, joined a distinguished panel, including Solicitor of Labor M. Patricia Smith, on a panel discussing the DOL’s recently expanded Whistleblower Protection Program and its recently modified procedures for investigating and adjudicating whistleblower claims.   The expert panel offered practical insights on litigating before the DOL and … Continue Reading

FINRA Again Cautions Against Confidentiality Provisions Silencing Whistleblowers

As reported this week by Law360 (subscription required), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) recently issued a reminder (Regulatory Notice 14-40) warning firms against the use of confidentiality provisions in settlement agreements that prohibit or otherwise restrict customers or anyone else (such as current employees) from communicating with the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), FINRA, or … Continue Reading

Watchdogs Petition SEC to Strengthen Prohibitions Against Impeding Complaints to SEC

On July 18, 2014, a coalition of plaintiff-side lawyers and government watchdog groups proposed ways to strengthen the SEC whistleblower program in two petitions filed with the SEC.  The groups urged the SEC to update Rule 21F-17, which prohibits any action that would “impede” an individual from communicating with the SEC about securities law violations, … Continue Reading

Podcast on Implications of U.S. Supreme Court’s First SOX Whistleblower Decision

Steven J. Pearlman, co-head of Proskauer’s Whistleblower & Retaliation Group, recently delivered a PODCAST for TheCorporateCounsel.net, focusing on the implications of the U.S. Supreme Court’s first SOX whistleblower decision, Lawson v. FMR.  This Podcast captures Pearlman’s interview with Randi Morrison, where Ms. Morrison presents the following questions: Can you describe the Majority’s ruling and the reasoning it … Continue Reading

Webinar With Leaders From SEC, CFTC and OSHA Whistleblower Programs, Proskauer and Plaintiff-Side Attorney

On April 30, at 12:00 – 1:30 Central, Proskauer will participate in a webinar through BNA with leaders from the SEC, CTFC and OSHA whistleblower programs and a plaintiffs’-side whistleblower attorney.  The webinar will focus on cutting-edge developments in the Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd-Frank whistleblower arenas.  The program, which will provide a range of competing perspectives, … Continue Reading

Wall Street Journal Quotes Proskauer’s Pearlman on 2013 Whistleblower Events & 2014 Forecast In Multiple Articles

In a January 27, 2014 article penned by Rachel Louise Ensign in the Wall Street Journal (Risk and Compliance Journal) titled “Why 2014 Could be Huge for Corporate Whistleblowers,” Steven Pearlman, partner and co-head of Proskauer’s Whistleblower Practice Group, commented on the need for employers to encourage employees to lodge complaints internally without fear of … Continue Reading

The Wall Street Journal (Risk & Compliance Journal) Quotes Steve Pearlman On Uptick In And Implications Of Whistleblower Claims By Compliance Professionals

In an insightful and timely article that appeared on WSJ.com yesterday (subscription required), Steven J. Pearlman, co-head of Proskauer’s Whistleblower & Retaliation Group, commented on the uptick of whistleblower complaints arising from compliance employees.… Continue Reading

Law360 Quotes Steve Pearlman on “Sweeping Tide” of Whistleblower Claims

In a Law360 article (subscription required), Steven J. Pearlman, co-head of Proskauer’s Whistleblower & Retaliation Group, commented on a “troubling” ruling recently rendered by the Merit Systems Protection Board (“MSPB”) in Day v. Department of Homeland Security, No. DC-1221-12-0528-W-1 (June 26, 2013).  In that decision, the MSPB gave retroactive effect to the broadened definition of “protected … Continue Reading

Law360 Quotes Steve Pearlman on SEC Whistleblower Program

In a Law360 article (subscription required), Steve Pearlman, co-head of Proskauer’s Whistleblowing & Retaliation Group, commented on the “controversy” surrounding the requirement some employers impose upon employees to report misconduct internally.  Pearlman noted that “[t]he plaintiffs bar and defense attorneys are sharply divided over the issue, with the whistleblower office opposed to mandatory reporting.” … Continue Reading

Law360 Quotes Steve Pearlman on Keeping Whistleblower Complaints In-House

In a Law360 article (subscription required), Steve Pearlman, co-head of Proskauer’s Whistleblowing & Retaliation Group, offered ways for companies to minimize their potential whistleblower liability.  Underlying Pearlman’s advice is the premise that “[i]t is better for the company and the shareholders alike for complaints to be lodged internally and to be brought to the company’s … Continue Reading

Sign Up For Proskauer’s Comprehensive Whistleblowing & Retaliation Webinar Series

On Tuesday, March 26, 2013, Proskauer’s Whistleblower & Retaliation Practice Group will be hosting the first of several webinars as part of the Whistleblowing & Retaliation Webinar Series.  The first program, titled SOX and Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Claims and Bounties: Understanding the New Landscape and Minimizing the Risks, will focus on the surge in whistleblower and … Continue Reading

Top 10 Ways To Minimize Whistleblower Risks

Here are the TOP 10 STEPS public and private employers should consider taking to minimize the risk of whistleblower retaliation claims and build defenses where litigation is unavoidable. These steps are based on lessons learned through litigating whistleblower cases to verdict and counseling employers to minimize the risk of litigation. One important theme underlying these … Continue Reading
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